It was a warm April night in 2024. I was cleaning my messy bedroom and had my Spotify Discover Weekly playing in the background. All of a sudden, I stopped cleaning and started listening. “August” by flipturn started playing, and I couldn’t just casually listen. I genuinely replayed the song 10 times, laying on my floor, absorbing the music.
Flipturn originated in Jacksonville, Florida back in 2015. They have since released many singles and EPs along with three studio albums, including one live album. They consist of five members: lead vocalist, Dillon Basse; lead guitarist, Tristan Duncan; guitarist and head synth, Mitch Fountain; bassist, Madeline Jarman; and drummer Devon VonBalson.
Basse has a unique sounding voice, with a bit of a high-pitch twang to his singing. It’s unconventional, but it pulls together the distinct sound of the band. “Goddamn” is one of my favorite songs that shows off Basse’s voice. Their instrumentals are also insane in many of their tracks like “Fletcher” and “Moon Rocks,” which both highlight the band’s distinctive synth talent.
The band itself has an indie vibe. One look at their Instagram shows their color scheme of oranges, teals and pinks, along with their psychedelic performance posters. Even their merch consists of stars and fun, colorful shapes.
The band had gone on multiple tours, their most recent being in honor of their latest album, “Burnout Days.” I personally attended two dates of the Burnout Days Tour, once in St. Louis and once Columbia, Missouri where they performed at Rose Music Hall.
Their shows are extremely high energy and the crowds, though small, are electrifying. During one of the last songs on their set, “Space Cowboy,” VonBalson puts a drum over his head while he plays and tosses his drumsticks into the crowd when he’s done. During their performance of “Savannah,” Basse sings it with just his acoustic guitar. Their stage presence has the audience on their toes the entire concert.
Flipturn has a broad range of music with their genres including indie and rock themes, stretching across their entire discography. Songs like “Swim Between Trees” and “Savannah” are calmer and more indie, whereas “Burnout Days” and “Chicago” have more of a rock feel.
Flipturn has begun to see some traction over the last few years. They are currently sitting at 2.1 million monthly listeners on Spotify and just finished their highly successful Burnout Days Tour. They also just released “Everything I Wanted,” a single with Evan Honer. This year, flipturn is playing at several music festivals, including a performance at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado. Hopefully, they continue to grow until they are a household name.
To wrap up, here is how you should start your new flipturn obsession. Although my recommendation would be to listen to all of their music, here are some great tracks to start off with from flipturn’s most prominent EPs and albums.
Heavy Colors (2017)
Citrona (2018)
Something You Needed (2020)
Shadowglow (2022)
Burnout Days
Live from Orlando
I hope flipturn can help to make your winter less “Cold” and you decide to take a listen to their amazing music.